34 WILD FLOWERS 



June to August : not originally a native in Britain, but now 

 completely at home. 



53. Tansy, Tanacetum vulgare, Daisy family. The leaf is 

 deeply feather-cut into slender segments ; these are again divided, 

 and the segments so formed are serrate ; in consequence the whole 

 leaf has a feathery appearance. The flower-heads are small, 

 button-like, and have no ray : they occur in large, flat, umbel- 

 like inflorescences : the plant is 2 to 3 ft. high, and has a hand- 

 some appearance : it grows about roadsides and river-banks, 

 and is cultivated in old gardens for the sake of its strong aroma. 



53. Tansy. 



51. Coltsfoot. 



Tansy Tea, made from the leaves, was formerly a much used 

 medicine. 



54. Coltsfoot, Tussilago Farfara, Daisy family. This plant 

 possesses an underground stem, which lives through the winter, 

 and in March sends up a short stalk, clothed with small, 

 pointed, reddish scales, with a single large, bright yellow flower- 

 head: in early spring these are conspicuous and beautiful 

 along roads, railways, and field-sides : the leaves only appear 

 when the flower is over : they are large, roundish heart-shaped, 

 with toothed margins: the under surface is covered with a 

 white down : the leaf is still used as a substitute for tobacco, 

 and is supposed to be a cure for colds. 



55. Groundsel, Senecio vulgaris, Daisy family. The leaves 

 are smooth and sometimes woolly, cut into blunt, toothed 

 lobes : the flower-heads are small, somewhat egg-shaped, with- 

 out a ray, and occur a few together at the apex of the stem : the 



